Galactic Empire
"In order to ensure our security and continuing stability, the Republic will be reorganized into the first Galactic Empire, for a safe and secure society!" - Sheev Palpatine The Galactic Empire, also known as the New Order, was the government that rose to power in the aftermath of the Clone Wars, replacing the Old Galactic Republic. Central authority was given to Emperor Palpatine, who was also a Dark Lord of the Sith. For nearly two decades, the legislative body was the Imperial Senate, but it was dissolved by the Emperor shortly before the Battle of Yavin. 'History' 'Origins' 'Manufacturing a Crisis' For at least a thousand years, the dominant governing body of the galaxy was the unicameral and democratic Galactic Republic, led by an elected Supreme Chancellor. In the last decades of its existence, the Republic Senate became mired in bureaucracy, rendering it woefully ineffectual as a governing body. Then Senator Palpatine privately lamented the declining state of the Senate, noting that the Republic was "not what it once was." Thirteen years before the Republic's end as a democracy, Darth Sidious; reigning Dark Lord of the Sith, and the secret identity of Senator Palpatine; orchestrated the invasion of his own homeworld by the Trade Federation, in order to orchestrate a crisis in the Senate. Palpatine used the crisis to manipulate the then Queen of the Naboo, Amidala, into calling a vote of no-confidence against sitting Chancellor Valorum. The vote passed, and in the subsequent election, Palpatine secured himself as the last Supreme Chancellor of the Galactic Republic. In the decade that followed, Palpatine secretly manipulated galactic events to the extent that war became inevitable. Besides persuading a dead Jedi Master to create a secret clone army, he also tasked his Sith apprentice, Darth Tyranus, with exacerbating political tensions in the Republic and engineering a schism. These actions would culminate in the outbreak of the Clone Wars, the last conflict of the Republic, while Palpatine himself "reluctantly" accepted emergency powers. 'The Clone Wars' For the duration of the war, Palpatine remained a popular leader, remaining in office at the will of the Senate for far longer than his term technically allowed. Throughout this period, Palpatine continued to consolidate and centralize his own power, paving the way for his eventual ascension to Emperor. As the war drew toward its end, the Jedi Order learned of Palpatine’s true identity as Lord of the Sith, Darth Sidious. Following an attempt to arrest him, a brief but vicious fight ensued in which several Jedi were killed at Sidious’ hands, and Sidious himself visibly injured in the struggle. The intercession of Jedi Knight Anakin Skywalker, who was a personal friend of Palpatine’s, and already disillusioned with both the Order and the war, ensured Palpatine’s victory. The prodigal Jedi was turned to the dark side of the Force, while Palpatine had a pretext upon which to turn the Republic against the Jedi. 'A New Order' "The war is over. The Separatists have been defeated, and the Jedi rebellion has been foiled. We stand on the threshold of a new beginning." - Emperor Palpatine Palpatine immediately seized the opportunity to order the clone army to enact Order 66: to exterminate the Jedi commanding forces across the galaxy. With this command programmed into the clones since their beginnings on Kamino, the Republic soldiers immediately turned on their Jedi commanders, and exterminated the vast majority of the Jedi Order in an instant. Shortly afterward, Palpatine dispatched his new apprentice, now christened Darth Vader, to wipe out the Separatist leadership on Mustafar. Now able to demonstrate threats to the Republic from both within and without, a visibly injured and scarred Palpatine addressed the Galactic Senate to announce the reforms which had been his endgame since the beginning. To the thunderous applause of the Senators, Palpatine announced that in order to ensure safety and security, the Republic would be reorganized into the Galactic Empire. 'Imperial Rule' As part of the new regime, existing government bodies were renamed to reflect the changes. The Grand Army of the Republic became the Imperial Army, while the Galactic Senate was rechristened as the Imperial Senate. For the next decade and a half, Imperial rule; bolstered by the military created to fight in the Clone Wars; dominated the galaxy largely unchallenged. Throughout this period, dubbed the "dark times" by Jedi survivor Obi-Wan Kenobi, any survivors of Sidious' Jedi purge were systematically hunted down and killed by Darth Vader, with the assistance of at least one Inquisitor. Decades later, it was apparent that just three Jedi had survived the Empire's wrath: Kenobi, Yoda, and a Padawan named Kanan Jarrus. Meanwhile, the Empire constructed a massive battle station with enough firepower to destroy an entire planet, later known simply as the Death Star, that had formerly been a Separatist project. With the rise of the Empire, all the institutions of the old Republic found themselves either dismantled or modified beyond recognition. There was a riot of renaming all things "Imperial" to glorify the new Emperor: overnight, the Coruscant Sector was renamed the Imperial Sector, Coruscant itself was renamed Imperial Center, and Galactic City was renamed Imperial City. The Galactic Senate became the Imperial Senate. The Grand Army of the Republic became the Imperial Army (though the clone troopers, which made up the majority of the GAR, were primarily reorganized into the Stormtrooper Corps) and the Republic Navy became the Imperial Navy. The four decrepit intelligence agencies of the Republic were merged into Imperial Intelligence, with former Senate Bureau of Intelligence (SBI) director Armand Isard at its head. The Palace of the Republic was rebuilt and expanded, becoming the Imperial Palace, eclipsing all other buildings on Imperial Center. The former Commission for the Protection of the Republic (COMPOR) was renamed the Commission for the Preservation of the New Order (COMPNOR). Within days, there were few names left to remind the people that there had ever been a Galactic Republic. Palpatine consolidated his power by launching purges against his opponents, most notably the Old Republic officers, whom he hadn't been able to seduce to his side. Any officers who held anti-Imperial sentiments were arrested and executed by Admiral Mulleen, under Palpatine's orders. Palpatine's first purge of the Imperial Navy occurred within just two weeks into the Empire's rule. In addition, many former Separatist worlds had their assets confiscated by Finance Minister Gahg under Palpatine's orders. During the first few years of the Empire, the galaxy saw the single largest military buildup in history. A permanent class of Moffs and regional governors was established to more efficiently govern individual sectors and regions of the Empire. Popular support for the policies of Palpatine's administration was high. In addition, the Empire also pursued a reconquest of the Middle and Outer Rims of the Galaxy, which included getting rid of any and all remaining Separatist influence. By the time of the Battle of Kelrodo-Ai during the Western Reaches Operation in 17 BBY, the Empire restored order and rule of law in eight sectors, and liberated 95 worlds. Nonetheless, many members of the Imperial military were unhappy about Palpatine's plans for imperialization: One Imperial officer, in particular, the headmaster of the Imperial Academy, Gentis, who lost all but one of his sons to Palpatine's warmongering ways during the imperialization effort, formed a military coup against Palpatine and poisoned him with Aorth-6 as a means to bring peace to the Empire, something he realized that Palpatine would never pursue. The coup, while initially successful, ultimately failed. 'Dark Times' We must move quickly. The Jedi are relentless. If they are not all destroyed, it will be civil war without end." - Palpatine As this process unfolded, The Emperor saw the respected Caamasi as a threat to his New Order, so he ordered the devastation of their home planet Caamas. A group of Bothan infiltrators were responsible for sabotaging Caamas's shield generators, leaving the planet vulnerable to Imperial orbital bombardment. The once beautiful world was devastated during this attack, turned into a poisoned wasteland. The peaceful Caamasi were dispersed throughout the galaxy. In 18 BBY, the Emperor constructed the huge, asteroid-shaped superweapon Eye of Palpatine in order to use it to destroy a Jedi enclave on Belsavis. However, the deadly superweapon was sabotaged by two Jedi Knights and the Jedi on Belsavis managed to escape. Around the same time, a group of beings were protesting the tyranny of the Galactic Empire on the planet Ghorman in the Sern Sector. Wilhuff Tarkin's flagship was blocked by peaceful protesters who stood on the ship's landing pad and refused to move. With implied permission from Palpatine, Tarkin landed the ship anyway, right on the protesters, injuring and killing many. This came to be known as the Ghorman Massacre. The Alliance to Restore the Republic was founded in its wake. Many Jedi also rebelled against Palpatine's regime. Olee Starstone and a group of Order 66 Jedi survivors along with Roan Shryne attempted to re-establish the Jedi Council but were unsuccessful. The group fled to Kashyyyk to find out if any Jedi survived there, but the Empire launched a massive takeover of the planet. Darth Vader killed Roan Shryne and some of the Jedi, with Starstone barely escaping with her life. A Wookiee among them, named Chewbacca, fled the city to find his family. Meanwhile, Ferus Olin along with his friends including Jedi Master Solace caused much havoc on Imperial-controlled planets including a rebellion on the planet of Bellassa, the two Jedi break-ins of the destroyed Jedi Temple, and the destruction of an Imperial Garrison and Weapon Munitions Center on Naboo. Also on Kessel, a group of Jedi including Master Tsui Choi and Jedi Knight Bultar Swan planned to draw Darth Vader into a trap and kill him. Due to exceptionally bad planning and tactics, every one of them was killed, though Vader's suit was slightly damaged. In 1 BBY, the Emperor and Vader were the targets of an attempted coup by a group of treacherous Imperial officers led by Grand Moff Trachta. Trachta saw the Sith as foolish and archaic, and believed that the Empire should not be ruled by a two-man cult. They planned to use a batch of altered stormtroopers loyal only to them to destroy the two Sith Lords. However, their plot failed in part because of internal fighting between the co-conspirators. 'Armed Rebellion' Around fourteen years into Palpatine's rule as Emperor, a small armed rebellion broke out on the Outer Rim world Lothal, with the assistance of former Jedi Padawan Kanan Jarrus, and the financial backing of the Organa family. From these humble beginnings, the rebel movement would eventually coalesce into the Alliance To Restore The Republic. About five years later, Imperial forces commanded by Darth Vader captured one of the leaders of the Alliance, Imperial Senator and Princess of Alderaan, Leia Organa; who, unknown to Vader, was in reality his own daughter. While nearly all of the old institutions of the Republic had been swept away in the intervening decades, this provided Palpatine the opportunity to finally wipe away the last vestiges of the old democracy, and dissolve the Imperial Senate permanently. With this, governance of the various systems of the Empire came to be directly under the purview of the Regional Governors and the Imperial military. Organa's presence; and her refusal to give up the location of the Alliance's base; precipitated Grand Moff Wilhuff Tarkin's decision to test-fire the newly-completed Death Star's primary weapon on her homeworld, Alderaan. In an instant, the Imperial military's superweapon utterly destroyed the populous, influential world. In so doing, Tarkin hoped not only to force Organa to submit, but also to strike fear into any others who sought to rebel against Imperial rule. Eventually, Organa was rescued from the Death Star by an unlikely alliance of Han Solo, a smuggler and former imperial navy officer; a Jedi survivor Obi-Wan Kenobi, who later sacrificed himself in his duel with Darth Vader; and her unknowing twin brother, Luke Skywalker. The group escaped the Imperial fortress and fled to the Alliance base on Yavin 4; hotly pursued by the Death Star. At Yavin 4, the Empire and the Rebels engaged in a major battle, with the fate of the rebellion hanging in the balance. Despite destroying a great many of the Alliance's starfighters, the battle ultimately ended up a crushing defeat for the Imperial forces, when young Skywalker successfully fired the shot which destroyed the Imperial battle station. The Death Star was destroyed, with all hands lost. 'The Empire Strike Back' While the loss of both Tarkin and the Death Star itself were significant, Imperial resolve toward putting down the rebellion only increased. For the next three years, Imperial forces under the direct command of Darth Vader relentlessly pursued the Alliance. While the hunt was personal for Vader, having learned that the young rebel Skywalker was actually his son, the Imperial military nevertheless scoured the galaxy with Imperial Probe Droids. Eventually, the Empire's search came to fruition when one of its probe droids located the Alliance's new base on the ice planet Hoth. The massive Imperial fleet, led by the command ship Executor, arrived in the system and deployed ground forces in a major assault on the Alliance forces. Overwhelmed, the rebels were forced to flee, and the Empire claimed a decisive victory. The Imperial pursuit of the rebels, however, did not stop at Hoth. The Imperial fleet continued to chase down the fleeing rebels, pursuing Leia Organa and now-General Han Solo into the Hoth asteroid field. Though Solo's ship, the Millennium Falcon, did manage to elude Imperial pursuit, Vader engaged the services of Bounty Hunters to track down the fleeing Alliance leadership. One of these bounty hunters was successful in tracking Organa and Solo back to Cloud City on Bespin, enabling Imperial forces to capture them and lay a trap for Luke Skywalker. The trap was eventually sprung, and Skywalker learned of his true relation to Vader, but the Imperial forces found themselves betrayed and, at least initially, overwhelmed by Cloud City's local authorities. The rebel leaders escaped Imperial custody again, but not without cost. Skywalker was maimed in a duel with Vader, while Solo was frozen in carbonite and handed over to the bounty hunter. Battered and bruised, the Alliance was once again in flight from pursuing Imperial forces. 'Palpatine's Trap' Sometime after the destruction of the Death Star at Yavin, work began on the construction of a new, larger version of the original battle station. This time, however, Emperor Palpatine decided to proactively approach the rebel problem. Rather than guard the station's secrets, as with the first Death Star, Palpatine opted to leak just enough information to bait the Alliance into striking at the station before it was completed; including the fact that he would be overseeing the final stages of the station's construction personally. Unknown to the rebels, Imperial engineers had already ensured that the new Death Star's main weapon was operational, and the Imperial military command had discreetly moved a large number of warships to a staging point on the far side of the Endor moon, where the Death Star was orbiting. Simultaneously, a legion of Imperial troops was deployed on the surface to stop any attempt at sabotaging the station's ground-based shield generator. When the Alliance fleet arrived en masse, the Emperor's trap was sprung. The rebel ground forces had taken the bait and been captured, so the Death Star's shield remained active, while the Imperial fleet moved into position to trap the rebels. With the Alliance fleet trapped between the bulk of the Imperial fleet and a shielded, fully-operational Death Star, victory for the Empire seemed assured. 'Crushing Defeat' Down on the surface of Endor, the tables were turned on the Imperial forces when they were unexpectedly attacked by the planet's indigenous Ewok population, giving the Alliance ground forces a free hand to destroy the Death Star's shield generator. With the shield down, Alliance starfighters were able to launch an assault on the Imperial station's reactor core. Meanwhile, aboard the station, a blow of an entirely different kind was struck against the Empire. A captive Luke Skywalker, now a Jedi in his own right, was successful in convincing Darth Vader to turn on his master. Vader; once again Anakin Skywalker; seized the Imperial head of state and hurled him down a shaft to his death. Soon after, the rebel starfighters were successful in attacking the Death star's reactor core. The station was destroyed; like its predecessor, lost with all hands. With the loss of both the Emperor and his right-hand man, Vader, the destruction of the Death Star itself, and significant losses inflicted on the Imperial fleet, the Imperial remnants were forced to withdraw. The Empire had suffered a crushing defeat, one from which it was unlikely to recover. 'Fractured Empire' The Empire was too large, however, to be destroyed in one blow; for the next decade or so, the Rebels (soon renamed the Alliance of Free Planets and then the New Republic) fought to free the galaxy from former Imperials styling themselves as independent warlords as well as Imperial loyalists, such as Thrawn and Ysanne Isard. Even prior to the fall of Emperor Palpatine in 4 ABY, the signs of fragmentation began to slowly reveal themselves as early as 0 ABY with the rebel's propaganda of the then recent Destruction of Alderaan. The first incursion was that of Moff Kalast, followed by the more serious situation involving the free-selling arms dealer Admiral Harkov, and finally culminating in the major Imperial infighting with Grand Admiral Demetrius Zaarin. The situation became serious when Zaarin attempted a coup d'état on Emperor Palpatine, managing to miraculously capture the Sith Lord by abducting him from his flagship, in a plot later thwarted by Admiral Thrawn. Immediately following the Imperial defeat at the Battle of Endor, Grand Vizier Sate Pestage seized control of the Empire. However, he lacked the charisma, Force powers, and terrifying presence that both Emperor Palpatine and Darth Vader used to keep the Empire together. Admiral Blitzer Harrsk was the first Imperial to declare himself a warlord and set up his own mini-Empire, but he would not be the last. Others included Admiral Treuten Teradoc, Admiral Zsinj, and General Sander Delvardus, to name a few. Sate Pestage only managed to hold the throne for a scant six months before he was deposed by the Imperial Ruling Council composed of three Tribunes. The Ruling Council was acting on the manipulations of Imperial Intelligence Director Ysanne Isard though, and the Ruling Council's leadership of the Empire ended under brutal conditions executed by Isard. Ysanne Isard managed to hold the Empire together and stem off aggressive warlords, as well as Trioculus and the false Kadann, who also claimed the throne, for nearly two years before losing control of Imperial Center. When Ysanne Isard started to lose her grasp over the Empire, she had her scientists develop a biological virus targeting only nonhumans that she later let loose in Coruscant. So when Coruscant fell under the Rebel's attack, led by Rogue Squadron, they inherited Isard's disease that caused havoc for the starting government. With the loss of Coruscant, the Empire dissolved further and, soon, Warlord Zsinj was seen as the single largest Imperial threat in the galaxy. Isard managed to evade death and escaped to her own little kingdom. The remnants of the Empire found themselves for the first time on the same side of the table as the New Republic. Both governments viewed Warlord Zsinj as their biggest threat. Zsinj came under the pressure of both governments, but it wasn't until Admiral Teren Rogriss teamed up with General Solo that they managed to bring Zsinj down. The temporary alliance was over and new fighting erupted between the Empire and the New Republic over the scraps of Zsinj's domain. However, the New Republic dealt blow after blow to the Empire, winning most of the engagements and further humiliating the Empire by pushing them off of the monstrous ship producing world of Kuat. 'Imperial Resurgence' The Empire continued to lose ground until the return of Grand Admiral Thrawn, a military genius, the only nonhuman to climb the ranks of the Imperial Navy, and the last remaining Grand Admiral. Grand Admiral Thrawn's campaign recaptured nearly half of the galaxy in the name of the Empire; however, it came to a sudden end when Thrawn was assassinated by his own bodyguard. Captain Pellaeon, Thrawn's second-in-command, knew that he could not continue Thrawn's inspired campaign and ordered a retreat. The New Republic immediately took advantage of the Imperial power vacuum and moved to cut off future Imperial threats in the form of the remaining warlords. Using the pretext of pursuing Imperials who had committed various crimes the New Republic began their push against Prince-Admiral Delak Krennel. Despite Krennel's new ally in a clone of Ysanne Isard and the real Isard's machinations to steal back her Super Star Destroyer the Republic emerged victorious and began pressing their advantage even more, leaving the Core worlds with minimal protection. In 10 ABY, the surviving members of the Imperial Ruling Council, under Ars Dangor's leadership, gathered several belligerent Imperial warlords to organize a military campaign into the Galactic Core. The warlords were emboldened by the late Grand Admiral Thrawn's triumphs and accomplishments against the New Republic, which was still recovering from the devastating Thrawn campaign. The New Republic was powerless to repel the military might of the once-more-unified Empire, and the Empire swiftly conquered much of the economically, politically and strategically vital Core Worlds within weeks. Chandrila, Esseles, Ralltiir, as well as the Metellos and Kaikielius systems, were seized by the Empire, while Caprioril was besieged by the Imperial Navy and the Borderland Regions were devastated. The offensive culminated in the decisive Second Battle of Coruscant, in which the New Republic abandoned the planet and the Empire retook the galactic capital. Having assumed total control over the Core Worlds, the Empire had been restored to its former glory, while the New Republic leadership relocated its headquarters to the Outer Rim Territories. After Coruscant had been retaken, the Imperial Ruling Council invited important political and military leaders to the Senate Building to elect the next Galactic Emperor and re-establish the disbanded Imperial Senate. However, the Moffs, Grand Moffs, Army, Navy, COMPNOR, Intelligence, Security Bureau and Inquisitorius, as well as various governors, noblemen and bureaucrats, craved absolute power over the Imperial state. The Empire plunged into anarchy and chaos: the Imperial Intelligence and Security Bureau orchestrated the assassinations of their political enemies, while COMPNOR purists attempted to take control of the regime in order to prevent any changes to the New Order. Soon, an armed conflict broke out amongst the various political and military factions, each trying to dominate the Empire. The disarrayed Imperial Military was responsible for committing atrocities, massacring civilians and destroying entire worlds. Above Coruscant, the orbit became littered with space debris and the Star Destroyers conducted orbital bombardments, transforming the surface of the planet into a decaying urban wasteland. On the surface, stormtroopers, walkers and tanks fought on the streets of the planet-wide ecumenopolis. Much of the galactic capital was laid to waste, and millions of native Coruscanti perished during the Imperial infighting. The New Republic took advantage of the chaos, performing raids on Imperial territories through the use of captured Imperial vessels. The civil war ended only several months following the retaking of Coruscant. 'Return of Palpatine' When it seemed the Empire would never return, that hopes were lost, and that the New Republic was finally close to victory, an enigmatic figure took the title of Emperor. However, this person was no new Emperor, for Emperor Palpatine had returned. Returning in fresh clone bodies imbued with the dead despot's spirit, he proceeded to rebuild his fallen Empire and six years later had finally regained the strength to again challenge the New Republic. While most of the rank and file troops returned to loyal service, few of the warlords did, while most fled for their lives. Palpatine regrouped the fragmented Empire's many warlords and loyal forces into a single unified force, headquartered at the secret throne world of Byss in the Deep Core. Determined to crush the weakened New Republic and once again subjugate the galaxy under his dark rule, the Galactic Emperor initiated a military campaign known as Operation Shadow Hand. Eventually, Palpatine intended to transform the Empire into a magocracy in which he ruled the galaxy forever with his loyal Dark Side Adepts. The Emperor turned Jedi Knight Luke Skywalker to the dark side of the Force to serve as the new Supreme Commander of the Imperial Forces, but Skywalker defected back to the New Republic and the astromech droid R2-D2 programmed the Emperor's awe-inspiring superweapons, the World Devastators, to destroy each other during the First Battle of Mon Calamari. In the Battle of Pinnacle Base, Palpatine summoned a Force storm to obliterate a New Republic fleet orbiting Da Soocha V. However, Skywalker and his sister Leia Organa Solo used the Force, causing the storm to annihilate Palpatine and his flagship, the Eclipse-Class dreadnought Eclipse. While Palpatine was presumably dead, the Shadow Hand Strategy was taken over by the Emperor's most powerful darksider, Military Executor Sedriss QL. Sedriss suffered heavy casualties in attempting to occupy the factory world of Balmorra and perished in the Battle of Ossus. However, the Emperor returned once again to spearhead his galactic conquest and commissioned his newest superweapon, the Galaxy Gun. The superweapon destroyed Da Soocha V, the Space City, Krinemonen and Hirsi, forcing numerous Inner Rim and Mid Rim worlds into accepting Imperial rule. The Empire had succeeded in conquering most of the galaxy and becoming the leading galactic superpower, while the New Republic was on the brink of downfall. However, a group of Imperial politicians and officers, led by Carnor Jax and Sarcev Quest, sabotaged the Emperor's clone bodies in order to assassinate Palpatine and take control of the Imperial state. In the skirmish on Onderon, Emperor Palpatine's final clone body was killed and mortally wounded Jedi Knight Empatojayos Brand took the Galactic Emperor's spirit to the Netherworld of the Force. Following the Emperor's final demise, the Star Dreadnought Eclipse II was programmed to collide with the Galaxy Gun, destroying both superweapons. The Galaxy Gun accidentally launched a particle disintegrator warhead on Byss, destroying the planet and killing its inhabitants. In these cataclysmic events, the Empire lost the Galactic Emperor, two superweapons, the Imperial Fleet orbiting Byss, and most of Palpatine's loyal advisors, officers, soldiers and Dark Side Adepts. The last major action of a Sith-led Empire, Operation Shadow Hand resulted in the final destruction of Palpatine's Empire, as the Destruction of Byss effectively terminated all political and military structures that upheld the Imperial state. Without the leadership and guidance of the late Emperor Palpatine, the Galactic Empire had practically ceased to exist. In the midst of chaos, rival warlords fled to their pocket empires, disorganized Imperial forces abandoned the Core Worlds, and the New Republic retook Coruscant. As a result, the resurrected Empire fell to its knees and self-destructed. 'Death Throes' Following Palpatine's final death, Carnor Jax seized the Imperial throne. However, the Imperial fleet was left rudderless without orders from their Emperor. They retreated from the Core Worlds, and the Empire quickly crumbled. Many fleet commanders refused to follow the Jax and his Interim Ruling Council, and they broke away to form various warlord holdings. Jax's Crimson Empire thus held a small territory, limited to a narrow band of space that stretched from the Outer Rim to the Colonies. It was the only territory still answerable to centralized Imperial control. When Jax was killed by his fellow former Guardsman Kir Kanos, the aristocrat Burr Nolyds took control of the Ruling Council. He was soon killed by Nom Anor, an ally of Councilor Xandel Carivus who was aiding Carivus's plans to become the new head of the council. Anor was secretly an advance agent of the extra-galactic Yuuzhan Vong species, and, unknown to even Carivus, he was targeting the council in order to hasten the Empire's collapse in advance of a massive Yuuzhan Vong invasion of the galaxy. Carivus was elected the new head of the council, but he soon disbanded the council and declared himself the new Emperor. When the New Republic attacked his powerbase on Ord Cantrell and he was killed by Kanos, utter collapse of Imperial authority followed, and the Empire ceased to exist. 'Organization' 'Government' Amongst high-ranking military personnel, the Emperor's name was spoken with fear. At the Emperor's side was his Sith apprentice, Darth Vader. Though frequently styled as a "Lord," and treated with a similar fearful deference as Palpatine, it is unclear whether Vader performed an official function of government. The Imperial Senate existed for nearly 20 years after the birth of the Empire, until it was disbanded by the Emperor. With the dissolution of the Senate, authority over the various systems and sectors passed directly to the regional governors; effectively transitioning governance into military jurisdiction, who answered directly to the Emperor. Within the Empire, non-humans were routinely subjugated. 'Military As the direct successor to the Grand Army Of The Republic, the Imperial Military comprised vast numbers of warships and countless soldiers. In addition, the Empire inherited the military assets of the defunct Separatist movement; the most notable of which was the Death Star. The Imperial Army and Imperial Navy were responsible for carrying out the Empire's military operations across the galaxy. Ostensibly dedicated to maintaining law and order, the Imperial military forces came to be feared and fled from. Perhaps the most ubiquitously visible element were the Imperial stormtroopers. These faceless soldiers were the enforcers of Imperial order, often exercising a 'shoot-first' policy. The Imperial Military, also known as the Imperial Service, was the armed forces of the Galactic Empire, and successor to the Republic Military, as Palpatine did nothing to halt the massive military build up that had produced an army of troopers and enormous weapons of mass destruction following the Clone Wars. It was responsible for carrying out military operations throughout the galaxy as well as maintaining order on Imperial member worlds, governorships, colonies, and protectorates. Its soldiers followed the Imperial Military Code. The military itself was under the direct control of Imperial High Command. Although the Galactic Emperor acted as the Commander-In-Chief of the Military, Palpatine rarely ever left the confines of his palace on Coruscant, leaving a relative few military personnel ever actually seeing him face to face. The next highest rank was that of the Supreme Commander. The individual who held this title had complete control over the Imperial Military, and answered only to the Emperor. In the absence of an official Emperor, the Supreme Commander often became the de-facto leader of the Empire, as was seen in the cases of Grand Admiral Thrawn and Gilad Pellaeon. This position was held by several different Imperial officials over the course of the Empire's history, including Darth Vader, Thrawn, and Gilad Pellaeon. The Imperial Military was not only a physical superpower, but a mental one as well. Vader's stormtrooper division, the 501st Legion, known as "Vader's Fist," inspired fear in any sentient species. The infamous Death Stars were used by Emperor Palpatine to frighten the galaxy's citizens into submission. These are only a few examples of the fact that pure fear of the Empire's might was often more effective than might itself. Much of the equipment used by the Empire was designed to enhance this effect, the fear-inspiring appearance of the AT-AT being one example of this phenomena. The Imperial Military was considered a massive organization, with tens of trillions of regular army soldiers, trillions of fleet crew, and a sizable force of stormtroopers. 'Organization' There were numerous branches in the Imperial Military, each for a different purpose. The Army and Stormtrooper Corps were used for ground missions. The Imperial Navy was responsible for space operations, the protection of space lanes, and the transportation of all Army troops (though it had little influence over their activities). The Imperial Department of Military Research (IDMR), based in the Maw Installation, was responsible for creating new, advanced technologies for use by the Imperial Military ranks. Battle Station Operations managed security space stations used by the Empire, such as the Death Stars. 'Imperial Military Structure' *Imperial Military **Imperial Army ***Imperial Ground Forces ***Imperial Engineering Corps **Imperial Diplomatic Corps **Imperial Military Police **Imperial Navy ***Imperial Navy Aquatic Forces ***Imperial Navy Exploration Forces ***Imperial Navy Space Forces **Imperial Special Operations Forces ***Imperial Senate Guard ****Imperial Senate Sentinel ***Imperial Emperor's Royal Guard ****Imperial Sovereign Protector ***Imperial Saber Guard ***Imperial Shadow Guard ***Imperial Palace Guard **Imperial Stormtrooper 'Astrography' As the successor state to the Galactic Republic, the Galactic Empire's authority spanned most of the known galaxy. Its reach was vast, claiming as its own every territory within the former Galactic Republic, as well as those which had joined the Confederacy of Independent Systems. 'Economy' The galactic economy was the macroeconomic combination of sector, system and planetary production, consumption, and trade. It could be broken down and represented in various ways, but it was inseparable from the astrography and ecological make up of the galaxy. It is important to note that economic differences between major galactic eras were negligible. 'Trade' At the heart of the galactic economy was planetary trade. Interplanetary trade could support a local economy, but, in many cases, the high levels of economic interaction and the massive scale of exchange required for an advanced society could only be funded by interplanetary exports. While some planets maintained their own shipping fleets, most relied on large freight firms, such as Xizor Transport Systems, or independent freight haulers to carry their goods along major hyperlanes. Around 350 BBY, major transport and merchant concerns united under the Trade Federation to increase efficiencies, lobby for trade-favorable legislation and control prices. The influence of the Trade Federation on the galactic economy was sufficient enough to damage or otherwise affect a number of planetary economies following its embarrassment at Naboo. While the Imperial era saw dramatic increases in state control and centralization of economic procedures, it had little effect on the galactic economy, as witnessed in the virtual non-existence of inflation. Ostensibly, the collapse of the Trade Federation and absorption of its assets by the Galactic Empire created a void filled by smugglers to address strong demand for shipping created by the Federation and then Imperial controls. Smugglers flourished in the Imperial era as independent operators or as part of larger organizations like those of Jorj Car'das, Quelev Tapper, Talon Karrde or Booster Terrik. After the rise of the New Republic, many smugglers joined the Smugglers' Alliance, which sought to coordinate smuggler and hauler operations. 'Role of Hyperdrive' Hyperdrive technology allowed for a galactic economy to take shape, fueled by standardized currency and the Core language of Basic. Prior to the invention of hyperdrives, trading (and exploration) were often limited to local star systems, due simply to the fact that most star systems were many light-years apart. Because of the need for self-reliance, few planets ever developed any sort of specialization prior to the formation of the galactic economy. 'Role of Droids And Slaves' Droids were an integral part of the Galactic economy and programmed for a number of uses, including construction, excavation, repair, piloting, maintenance, mining and other labor. The advantages of using such droids were that they could work in inaccessible and dangerous environments that most sentient species could not, as well as not needing pay or other perks biological sentients would. Despite being outlawed by the Republic under the Galactic Constitution, slavery was still practiced in lawless areas such as the Outer Rim and even clandestinely in areas closer to the more civilized Core. One example of this is the Republic controlled Telos IV Citadel Station, upon which a Twi'lek dancing girl was kept as an indentured worker due to the gambling debt of another. Slavery was apparently abolished, or at least greatly frowned upon, in the Republic by the time of the Battle of Naboo, as evidenced by Padmé Amidala's shock at Anakin Skywalker's slavery. 'Economic Specialization' To compete in the galactic economy, many planets chose to focus their economy at a planetary level. Planets with a valuable natural resource would focus on its export, while other less fortunate planets would achieve success through economies of planetary scale. Entire planetary surfaces often were devoted to grain fields, droid and engineering factories, or mineral mining, greatly affecting planetary climates. These were common in the many regions, like Corporate Sector. Especially it was developed in the Imperial period, when there was a large-scaled military construction. Other planets, however, (at least in earlier times) voluntarily chose what might be described as deliberate non-specialization. Small-time farming was the ideal. Herding and hunting also took place. Concentrating not on mass export but rather on providing for themselves, they were largely dependent on imports to sustain their non-agricultural needs. In some ways these worlds could be thought to rank alongside the more poverty stricken but in reality they served as the perpetual customers for which more developed systems existed to supply. 'Institutions' 'Important Organizations' While millions of firms participated in commercial exchanges, only a small number of major galactic conglomerates possessed impressive influence over the galactic economy. Some galactic firms employed millions of beings across thousands of worlds with trillions of consumers. In the last millennia of the Galactic Republic, commercial interests began to form guilds to increase their influence on relevant legislation and achieve greater efficiency. While most of these guilds, like the Techno Union and the Commerce Guild, collapsed after the Clone Wars, a number of surviving members flocked to the Corporate Sector Authority. Many planets maintained stock exchanges and banks, but it was uncommon for these institutions' influence to extend beyond their local star system. Many of those banking institutions that served clients beyond their local area stored their collateral on Aargau or Muunilinst. Major interstellar banking institutions included the Bank of the Core, the InterGalactic Banking Clan, the Galactic Banking Network and the InterGalactic Bank of Kuat. 'Currency' Thousands of currencies were used across the galaxy. It was not uncommon for a planetary economy to operate on a number of currencies, including planetary credits, credits of a major power in the sector, or credits of a galactic government. Many major governments produced credit chits, but credit chips were commonly used as well. These debit based systems could be used for electronic sales through interchip exchanges. Metal coins were commonly used for local currency, although galactic governments were known to produce commemorative metal coins, like the Victory Tax Credit or Decicred. The Galactic Republic's dataries were perhaps the most widespread form of currency. Because of the Republic's exceptional membership, dataries were accepted on all but the most remote planets. Galactic Empire and Rebel Alliance each supported credits that were accepted across member worlds, and occasionally on non-member worlds. The constant ebb and flow of power between these governments and the range of support for them made the value of their currency fluctuate wildly from system to system. The establishment of the New Republic presumably stabilized the galactic economy. The economy practically collapsed during the Yuuzhan Vong War. So immediately after the war, the Alliance began massive reconstruction efforts throughout the galaxy, in the form of the Reconstruction Authority. The Authority was tasked with such things as re-terraforming Coruscant and finding a new homeworld for the Ithorians and other species that lost their homes to the Vong and more. 'Taxation' Under Republic law, all wage-earning beings were required to pay income tax. This tax was collected by the Republic Tax Collection Agency. When the Trade Federation complained about piracy in the outlying star systems, the Republic Senate passed a tariff on those formerly free trade zones. This action justifiably upset the Trade Federation Viceroy, prompting him to blockade and invade the small planet of Naboo. Right before the Clone Wars, a fifteen percent transit tax was levied on all tickets sold in an effort to raise emergency funds for the government. After the Galactic Republic changed to the Galactic Empire, tax laws were consolidated into the Imperial Revenue Codes and placed under control of the Imperial Taxation Bureau. 'Society And Culture' The culture of the Galactic Empire was ascetic and minimalist. These aesthetics were encouraged throughout the galaxy by the Coalition for Progress, an arm of COMPNOR. 'Slavery' The Galactic Empire utilized slavery for several weapon projects, including the creation of the Death Star superweapons. In addition, any enemies of the Empire that had been defeated, particularly the females and younglings, were often sent to Orvax IV to be processed into the slave market, especially if they served no purpose to the Empire otherwise. 'Arts And Media' The role of art and media in the Galactic Empire was primarily didactic; cultural expression served as an instrument for inculcating New Order ideology. During its short existence, the Empire was not particularly brutal in the suppression of artistic culture, as it was primarily interested in military and political dominance. However, pressures from the New Order left their mark on the art of the Imperial period. Several anti-Imperial artists were executed for sympathizing the Rebel Alliance, such as Borna, a young musician who composed dark and moody symphonies as a protest against the Empire. The policy of distributing Imperial propaganda was maintained by the Imperial Ministry of Propaganda, the Imperial Propaganda Bureau and the Propaganda Dissemination Section. Imperial HoloVision, the successor of HoloNet News and a leading galactic provider of news and entertainment, adopted a pro-Imperial stance and thus, was the Empire's most powerful propaganda tool. All Imperial media was verified, reviewed and censored by the Imperial Board of Culture, as well as the Ministry of Culture. Holodrama was another venue for politics. Many Imperial holofilms glorified the New Order and were blatantly propagandistic, such as Win or Die, depicting the heroism of a boy who ardently supported the New Order in spite of his parents' opposition, or Sacrifice at Endor, in which Emperor Palpatine was portrayed as a benevolent savior and the hero of the Battle of Endor. One of the most notable pro-Imperial music bands was The Emperor's New Clothes, favored by the Imperial Board of Culture. The band was opposed by anti-Imperial Red Shift Limit, of which all albums were banned by Imperial authorities. The premier orchestra of the Empire was the Imperial Symphony Orchestra. The official sport of the Empire was wegsphere, a competitive game invented by SAGRecreation (SAGRec), that could be considered one of their greatest successes. While wegsphere was originally introduced as a sporting activity for COMPNOR members, it became surprisingly popular through the galaxy, spreading to thousands of worlds. The official Imperial shockball team was, presumably, the Royal Shockball Team. Another sporting event that took place yearly throughout the Empire was the Imperial Games. 'Religion' Under the Galactic Empire, Anti-Jediism was a government policy, which meant that people were discouraged to believe in the Force. But it was not just the Jedi that suffered. All Force-sensitives were targeted. Despite the established anti-Jediism of the New Order, many in the Imperial government were aware that Emperor Palpatine and Darth Vader were Force users, but only a few knew that they were Sith Lords. This sentiment also led to an attempted coup on Palpatine and Vader, with the official reason being their Force-sensitive nature. Besides Palpatine and Vader, there were some Imperial officers, such as Colonel Dyer who were at the very least Force-attuned, and even some, such as Grand Admiral Nial Declann, were secretly trained in harnessing the Force for a specific purpose for Palpatine. 'Xenophobia' "When have I ever shown myself to be intolerant of species indifferences? Yes, our army is human, I am human, and most of my advisers and military officers are human. But that is merely the result of circumstance." ―Palpatine The Empire's New Order emphasized Human and, to a lesser extent, humanoid supremacy, with other alien species were designated as "Non-huMans". The Empire practiced the policy of "Human High Culture", based on Humanocentric beliefs of Humans being inherently superior to other species. Many non-human species like Wookiees, Mon Calamari, Talz, and Lurrians were subjected to slavery. The Rights of Sentience, one of the most well-known anti-speciest clauses of the Galactic Constitution, as well as other important anti-slavery laws that were ratified during the reign of the Galactic Republic, were removed from the Imperial Charter and legislation legalizing the persecution of alien species was passed. The Empire essentially legalized slavery in Imperial Decree A-SL-4557.607.232. The Empire was known to commit atrocities and xenocidal campaigns against Non-huMan species, such as the Caamas Incident to wipe out the peaceful Caamasi, and commissioning Imperial extermination ships to eradicate entire species through the Outer Rim Territories. One of the members of the Imperial Inner Circle known as Janus Greejatus established the Imperial Department of Redesign to suppress and exterminate Non-huMan species. On Imperial Center, all Non-huMans were forced to move into an "ethnic neighborhood" designated as the Alien Protection Zone, keeping them under poor living conditions. As a result, the vast majority of the government officials were composed of Humans, with only rare exceptions like Grand Admiral Thrawn climbing in the ranks of the military. However, the cases of Ampotem Za, Stafuv Rahz and Bentilais san Sk'ar indicate that the Empire tolerated Non-huMans if they were willing to pledge loyalty to the Emperor. The Imperial propaganda machine issued fabricated Humanocentric documents to highlight and exaggerate Human involvement in galactic history and culture, ignoring countless accomplishments and contributions of numerous Non-huMan species in the founding of galactic civilization and the Republic. Under the New Order, pro-Human propagandists argued that the most advanced and wealthiest member planets of the Galactic Republic in the Core Worlds and other regions of the galaxy were universally ruled and inhabited by Humans. Notably, the pro-Imperial sentientologist Obo Rin was sponsored by Darth Vader and Lieutenant Pandur to write the Catalog of Intelligent Life in the Galaxy, a falsified piece of work stating that the Mon Calamari and Columi, longstanding members of the Old Republic, had recently been discovered by the Empire. On the other hand, the Iyra Professor Tem Eliss was forced to go into hiding from COMPNOR agents for his pro-alien book The University of Sanbra Guide to Intelligent Life. The Empire's Humanocentric policies spurred anti-Human bigotry and led into the foundation of the anti-Imperial Alien Combine on Imperial Center in 3 ABY, although the organization was ultimately wiped out by the Imperial security forces. Ironically, the successor organization of the Combine, the terrorist group Diversity Alliance, attempted to commit anti-Human xenocide in the years following the Bastion Accords by using a Human-killing pathogen developed by the Empire. A high degree of male chauvinism was also seen in the Empire's government and military. Combining the rampant misogyny with the alien persecution, the Empire was often referred to as having "Non-huMan policies". Notable exceptions to acknowledged male chauvinism included Director Ysanne Isard of the Imperial Intelligence, Major General Tessala Corvae of the Imperial Army and several navy officers like Admiral Natasi Daala, Admiral Betl Oxtroe, Captain Juno Eclipse, and Captain Plikk. The sexist policies that plagued the Empire encouraged Major General Corvae to establish the Firebird Society to prove that females were effective and capable soldiers for the Imperial Military. Under the New Order, the droids often met harsh treatment, because they were not considered to be full citizens by the Imperial law. Many Imperial institutions preferred the Wookiees and other enslaved sapient beings for complicated and challenging construction projects such as the first Death Star, even though the droids were economically cheaper laborers and provided more effective and sophisticated performance capacity than organic slaves. Curiously, an IG-series assassin droid called 4-8C ascended to the rank of Grand Moff and was involved with the activities of the Imperial Department of Redesign. The cyborgs were shunned and detested by the Imperial citizens, and even Grand Admiral Osvald Teshik was ostracized for his extensive cybernetic prosthetics. The most notable exception in the prevalent anti-cyborg sentiment was the second most powerful man of the Empire, Supreme Commander Darth Vader, whose cybernetic life support system sustained his grievous injuries and struck terror in the hearts of the enemies of the Empire. While the Empire was unquestionably xenophobic, there is little to suggest that the Emperor himself was. The Sith Order was in no way xenophobic, with much of its foundations in the humanoid race of Sith, and many of the greatest Sith Lords were either alien or half-breed, with Sidious' own Sith Master, Darth Plagueis, being a Muun, and his first Sith apprentice, Darth Maul, being a Dathomirian53 Zabrak54. In fact, it is believed that the privy councilors and advisors that filled Palpatine's court and ran the Empire on a day-to-day basis were the xenophobes, and applied Human High Culture on their own accord. In addition, Palpatine denied the accusations of his being intolerant of species indifferences, citing that the Empire's Human population being the majority as simply being the result of circumstance.55 Numerous high-ranking Imperial bureaucrats and military personnel such as Lord Crueya Vandron, Grand Moff Wilhuff Tarkin, Grand Admiral Ishin-Il-Raz, Grand Admiral Danetta Pitta, and many others were known for their Humanocentric attitude. The most prominent Imperial xenophobe was Grand Vizier Sate Pestage who considered all Non-huMans to be nothing more than worthless "animal waste". It seems likely, given the presence of Prince Xizor of the Black Sun, Grand Admiral Thrawn, and other notable aliens in the Imperial Court that Palpatine simply used xenophobia to cull loyalty from his fellow Humans, while using everyone regardless of species in general. Indeed, many of the Emperor's loyal Dark Side Adepts, like Hethrir, Ja'ce Yiaso and Gwellib Ap-Llewff, were not Human. 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